Zootopia 2: A Wilde Tale
by mkray120
Summary: Nick and Judy have been partners for about a year now, and life is going good for both. But soon, things begin to change. As a new mystery unfolds, Nick must confront his shadowy past and Judy faces her own new dilemma. Will their relationship withstand these trials?
1. Chapter 1

**Introduction:** Hello, this is my first Zootopia story. I just started publishing fanfiction earlier this year, so I apologize if that formatting of the story is awkward. Like always, I would love some feedback! Enjoy.

 **Disclaimer:** All rights to Disney and the Zootopia franchise. A few OC's are my creations.

 **Story Note:** This fanfic will be a bit more Nick-centric versus Judy, unlike the original move, but Judy still plays an important role.

* * *

 **Zootopia 2: A Wilde Tale**

 **Chapter One**

Hopps and Wilde. Wilde and Hopps.

Dedicated partners against crime, yet best friends all of the time.

That was how everyone referred to Nick and Judy these days, and the fox-rabbit pair would not have wanted it any other way.

'Dumb fox, sly bunny', is what they jokingly liked to call themselves, in a rather affectionate and chummy way.

Almost one year earlier, Nick P. Wilde, former con-artist and vagabond, had graduated from the police academy and was assigned to Zootopia's prestigious Precinct One. And of course, he was assigned as partners with the ever-courageous Officer Hopps.

Since then, Nick and Judy spent all of their work days together, successfully handling various police cases - both small and large. Although thus far, nothing compared to the scandalous Night Howlers case, which had fatefully brought them together in the first place.

The prey-predator duo were typically assigned on Second Watch, which consisted of working the 12pm – 9pm shift, and included an hour-long lunch. Like all employees of the ZPD, they worked five days out of the week, with two days-off in between.

Of the employees' days-off, one day would rotate depending on department needs, while the remaining day would be assigned permanently, unless extenuating circumstances developed. For Nick and Judy, they always had Wednesdays off.

And today, was Wednesday.

It was about 6 o'clock in the evening, and Nick was walking by himself in a middle-class neighborhood of Zootopia, several blocks away from his own residence. The weather was mild and pleasant, with just a hint of breeze in the air.

The fox was wearing a casual green shirt and gray-colored trousers, fairly typical of his leisure attire. With him, he also carried a small paper-bag, filled with grocery-store goodies. And like always, Nick moved with a cool and nonchalant stride.

As he passed by various apartment and condo complexes, which in this district were specifically built to house small to medium-sized animals, the predator finally came to a stop in front of a pale, blue-colored edifice.

But before Nick headed up the steps and entered the building, he briefly took a moment to gaze up towards the higher floors of the tall structure, and smiled softly.

Judy's place.

Almost every Wednesday night, Nick and Judy hung out together.

Sometimes, they would go out for a casual dinner or try out some GenusOn activity offer (the latter solely being Judy's idea). But most of the time, the pair would just stay at home and watch a movie or TV. And per usual, order take-out meals and eat junk food too.

Each week, they switched off whose place they would meet up at. Thus for tonight, it was Nick's turn to come over to Judy's apartment.

Now suddenly, the fox suddenly let out a deep, yet content sigh.

He looked down thoughtfully at the ground, pondering over how much his life had changed since the day he met Judy Hopps. His crooked and murky origins were left in the past, which all seemed like a lifetime ago. Everything was a lot different now, there was no doubt about it.

Yet truth be told, Nick was perfectly happy with how things had worked out - life was going pretty good.

And now he lifted his head, and finally walked up the small stoop in front of him.

Nick quickly punched-in the password Judy had given him into the door's alarm-lock, and easily let himself in. The red-furred mammal whistled softly to himself as he casually strode cross the stylishly decorated lobby.

Unlike his prompt and punctual rabbit-friend, when Nick was visiting an acquaintance, he rarely bothered to text others and let them know he was close to arrival. This elusive tendency had bothered Judy at first, but overtime – at least, for the most part - she had gotten used to most of Nick's habits, as he did the same with her own.

Once Nick approached the lobby elevators, he stopped in-front of the closest one and pressed the numbers "1-0" into control panel. The doors parted open almost immediately and the fox hopped inside the lift, then at last headed up to visit his best friend.

 _'Our favorite night of the week.',_ Nick thought, with a small grin.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** I think will start this story off with a couple of shorter chapters and catch up with our favorite characters, but then lengthen them as the story progresses. I appreciate any reviews/suggestions!


	2. Chapter 2

**Introduction:** Hello, this is my first Zootopia story. I just started publishing fanfiction earlier this year, so I apologize if that formatting of the story is awkward. Like always, I would love some feedback! Enjoy.

 **Disclaimer:** All rights to Disney and the Zootopia franchise. A few OC's are my creations.

* * *

 **Zootopia 2: A Wilde Tale**

 **Chapter Two**

"So Judy dear, anything else new with you?", asked Bonnie Hopps, her voice cheerful and sweet as always.

Judy tilted her head in consideration, and smiled happily back at her mother.

The pair were not speaking in person, but many miles away from each other, via MuzzleTime on their smartphones. Typically once a week, Judy would chat with her parents using the app, and they would catch up for a bit.

A few moments earlier that evening, Judy had just gotten out of a hot shower after a tough gym session, when she received the video-call from Bonnie. The twenty-something now rested comfortably on her bed, wearing a pair of navy-blue ZPD sweatpants and a white t-shirt – the perfect lounge wear for a night at home. The parent-child duo continued on their cordial conversation.

"Oh, not really. Work keeps me pretty busy. But I've finally put the finishing touches on decorating my new place!", Judy exclaimed happily.

The gray-furred rabbit took a moment to maneuver her smartphone and panned it across her bedroom, showing off the pretty, airy pink and white décor via camera to her mother.

When Judy put the phone's focus back on herself, she saw a wide grin on Bonnie's kind face.

"Wow, it looks great, honey!"

About three months ago, Judy's lease on her old apartment had gone up, so she found herself a new place. She had moved from a shabby studio in a lower-class district, into a trendy one-bedroom apartment in a nicer neighborhood. Her best friend and work partner, Nick Wilde, had helped her arrange things.

Judy could not deny it, things were going pretty good.

"Thanks, Mom! Y'know, it's been really cool to do all this new stuff on my own, out here in Zootopia.", she replied, her violet-colored shining animatedly.

In addition to her job on the police force, Judy usually kept herself preoccupied with gym classes, volunteer work and discovering fun sites around Zootopia.

Life in the city was big and bold – and she loved it.

From the family home, back in quaint and rural Bunnyburrow, Bonnie Hopps smiled faintly at her daughter through the glass screen. Though now curiously, the mother's face formed a melancholic expression.

And being the good-natured mammal she was, Judy quickly took notice of the change. Her brows suddenly knitted in concern, and she bit her bottom lip cautiously.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

The older female rabbit remained silent momentarily, but then gently shook her head and brushed off her daughter's dutiful concern.

"Oh it's nothing, Judy! Believe me, your father and I are so proud of you, and of everything you've accomplished since you moved out. But it's just that...we really miss you sometimes...you're still our lil' gal, you know?!", Bonnie explained, her tone completely heartfelt and sincere.

For a quiet moment, both parent and child gazed thoughtfully at each other through their phones, pondering over one another's words.

Judy let out a soft sigh, and then finally broke the silence.

"Oh Mom, of course I miss you guys, too! I know I haven't been to Bunnyburrow in awhile, but I promise, I'll come out to visit someday soon – okay?", the younger rabbit replied, her eyes large and honest.

But as she gazed back her mother, Judy could not help but feel a wave of guilt over come her.

In the past year or so she had lived in Zootopia, Judy had solely been concerned with her career and enjoying her new life, reveling in the independence city-life offered. She had not really paid much attention to what was going on back in her hometown.

In fact, the ZPD officer had only visited her family once since the Bellwether case folded.

"Oh Judy, we would all love that!", responded Bonnie, quite joyfully. The mother and daughter grinned happily back at each other.

But just then, before either rabbit could say anything else, their conversation was suddenly interrupted.

" _Ring-ring-ring-ring...ring-ring!"_

There was a visitor at the front door, and whomever it was, pressed the door-bell several times in row, rather incessantly. Judy abruptly looked away from her phone, and toward the bedroom's entrance, which lead into the foyer.

It could either be a neighbor who was rudely impatient, or good friend who was simply jesting with her. Judy smiled whimsically to herself. Of course, the rabbit was quite certain of whom was at the door.

 _'Good ol' Nick.'_ , she thought fondly.

"Judy...Judy?", now asked Mrs. Hopps, slightly confused as why her daughter's face had moved out of the camera's view.

Rather quickly, Judy adjusted her phone and looked back down at the screen.

"Hey, mom...my friend is finally here, I gotta go now – it's kinda our buddy night, ha-ha! But it was really nice talking to you.", the rabbit explained, quite earnestly.

Even though Judy loved to keep busy and had a pretty hectic schedule for most of the week, Wednesday nights were her time to finally relax, and enjoy the quieter moments of life.

Not bothered at all, Bonnie nodded happily in agreement.

"Of course Judy, I totally understand. I'll talk to you later. Good night, sweetie. Love you,", the elder rabbit said, with a gentle smile.

"Good night, Mom! Love ya, too!", Judy exclaimed, and grinned widely back at Bonnie.

And with that, the mother and daughter each tapped their phone-screens once and exited out of MuzzleTime, saying farewell until their next chat.

Judy let out a contented sigh and swung her legs off her bed, now totally sitting up right. The gray-furred rabbit quickly got herself up and headed out of the room, then happily walked towards the front door to meet Nick.

 _'Our favorite night of the week.'_ , Judy thought to herself, with a smile.


	3. Chapter 3

**Introduction:** Hello, this is my first Zootopia story. I just started publishing fanfiction earlier this year, so I apologize if the formatting of the story is awkward. Like always, I would love some feedback! Enjoy.

 **Disclaimer:** All rights to Disney and the Zootopia franchise. A few OC's are my creations.

* * *

 **Zootopia 2: A Wilde Tale**

 **Chapter Three**

As Nick waited outside of Judy Hopps' apartment door, he tapped his right-foot on the ground in blasé fashion and then slowly let out a long, drawn-out yawn.

And now the fox glanced around at the floor lobby, and took a moment to appreciate how well-lit and clean it looked, though he had already visited a few times since Judy moved in. It was far nicer than his own current residence, which he shared with an oddball possum roommate in a shadier neighborhood of Zootopia.

Unlike Judy, whom since being employed with the ZPD was able to reinvest her savings into better accommodations, Nick still had certain debts to pay-off before he could do the same.

 _'Well, at least I'm better off now, than when I was living under a bridge.'_ , the fox reminded himself dryly, with a shrug.

But then just as Nick finished his thought, the apartment door in front of him abruptly swung open, and revealed the mammal he had been waiting on.

With a wide grin on her face, Judy threw her arms out to her sides in an overtly-exaggerated manner, and greeted her friend. Unfazed by the dramatic spectacle, Nick simply raised a skeptic eyebrow at the smaller animal.

"What's happenin', Wilde!?", the rabbit exclaimed, her violet-colored eyes shining large and bright.

"About time, Hopps. What took you so long?", Nick commented, his tone simultaneously teasing and friendly, "And here, I brought the good stuff. " The fox took the paper-bag full of junk food he had been carrying and playfully shoved it towards Judy, whom quickly grabbed on and stepped back slightly in surprise.

But then in response, the rabbit suddenly looked forlorn and lost in thought, as if her hopes had just been dashed. She lowered her eyes and shook her head sadly at the ground.

"Aw gee, I guess I don't make a great hostess after all, do I?", she retorted now, with obviously faux disappointment, and even let her tall bunny-ears droop down for an added effect.

Automatically, Nick and Judy looked at each other in unison, then grinned widely.

After having known each other for little over a year, and spending almost everyday together as work partners and good friends, the pair were almost always in-sync with their shared sense of humor. As their good police-pal Clawhauser often liked to say, it seemed that Nick and Judy 'went together like peanut-butter and jelly.'

The red-fox shrugged his shoulders apathetically, and a faint smirk formed upon his sharp-features.

"Eh...you're alright with me, Carrots. Now make way, will ya?", Nick admittedly replied, as he suddenly used his right-arm to push Judy aside, saunter through the doorway and make his way further into the apartment.

As she watched on after her friend, the female rabbit let out a deep sigh and dramatically rolled her eyes. Yet still, she also had a smirk on her face.

"Well, good to know!", she announced loudly, with a snide attitude. Though in actuality, Judy was not truly bothered by Nick's antics, for she gave him the same sort of treatment when it was the fox's turn to play host at his own place – it was all in good fun.

Now, Judy shut the door behind her with a backwards kick of the leg, and went on to join Nick in her recently furnished living room. The prey and predator soon found themselves standing across from each other, with a stylish glass coffee-table situated in between them.

With his hands at his waist, Nick curiously glanced around the room, and then nodded appreciatively.

The trendy space consisted of teal and charcoal-gray décor, along with white details. The sleek electronics and appliances were all black, including a new TV that hung on the main wall. Silver-toned and faux-jewel decorative pieces also dotted the room, adding hints of pleasant luminosity all around.

The fox was impressed.

"Y'know every time I come over, this place is looking nicer and nicer. You've done good for yourself, Bunny. I'm real proud of ya.", Nick warmly congratulated his friend, with a quick wink of an eye.

He then turned away and leisurely headed over to the plush, three-seated sofa that sat directly across from the plasma TV. The red-furred mammal dropped himself lazily into a corner-seat, propped his feet up on an ottoman, and grabbed the remote off the end-table.

Nick switched on the TV, and then peacefully let out long, relaxed sigh.

Entirely amused at her companion's antics, Judy quietly smiled and chuckled as she watched Nick get himself comfortable. "Well, I'm glad you think so, Fox.", she replied, in a pleased tone.

The rabbit moved ahead to join him and took a seat on the opposite side of the sofa. She pulled her feet up underneath herself then grabbed onto a sofa-cushion, and tucked it cozily into her diminutive arms. Nick glanced over at Judy and gave her a sly grin, which the rabbit affectionately returned in kind.

 _'Ah, Wednesdays.'_ , each thought fondly to themselves. Then, both mammals simultaneously turned their attention back to the TV.

"Of course.", the fox replied simply. He now tapped on the remote and toggled between the menu options of the WebFlix streaming app, in search of a good show or movie to watch.

After a brief moment of silence between them, Nick spoke up once again., "So what've you been up to today?", he asked casually.

"Oh, not too much. Just ran some errands, went to the gym,", Judy began to explain, "and then Muzzletime'd with Mom for a little while, before you got here."

As she spoke, female rabbit opened the small grocery bag Nick had handed her earlier, and searched around for her favorite candy. She found it easily – a special dark chocolate bar with a mixed berry filling – and smiled to herself, delighted that he remembered to buy it.

"Oh, that's nice.", said Nick in response, with a sense of consideration in his voice.

Unlike himself, the fox knew that his work-partner kept in touch with her own family, even if she did not see them in person very often anymore. He had met the Hopps' briefly once, when they came to Zootopia for a visit on Judy's birthday, and found them to be pleasant people.

Likewise, in the early months of their friendship, Judy had tried to inquire about Nick's own family and origins a few times, but he always found away to brush off the subject – he didn't like to talk about family. And eventually, it seemed his rabbit-friend had gotten the hint.

"How about you?," now asked Judy, as she bit into the prized candy-bar.

Nick shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly, "Just been chilling, same old stuff.", he replied, before changing the subject.

"What do you wanna watch? I'm thinking either "Straight Outta Zooton' or 'Giraffic World'." The fox tilted his head slightly as he stared at the TV screen, unsure of what movie option to select.

Judy glanced over at her friend and raised an inquisitive brow.

"Well actually, there's a cool new documentary out about plant husbandry. It looks really interesting, how about that? I'd like to watch it.", the rabbit suggested, the tone of her voice seemingly genuine and matter-of-fact.

The fox now frowned and abruptly snapped his neck towards Judy, and gave her a look of utter disbelief. The boring suggestion was certainly not what he had in mind, even if her own background was of the agrarian sort – Nick hoped she was not serious.

But at the moment, Judy's expression appeared completely honest.

"Oh...really?", asked Nick, with an oddly uncertain tone. He may have been a con-man and selfish mammal in the past, but now a part of him did not want to offend his friend, nor hurt her feelings if she was serious.

The rabbit gently nodded and continued to look at him earnestly, as if she truly was genuine about her proposition. But then after a rather lengthy moment, Judy suddenly broke into wide grin and laughed loudly at Nick, amused at his lapse of judgment.

Meanwhile, the predator rolled his eyes, annoyed that he had been fooled. He shook his head and turned his attention back to the TV.

"I'm kidding, Nick! You should already know, I've had enough of the farming life - 'Giraffic World' it is.", Judy exclaimed, with a satisfied smirk. She then teasingly goaded her friend on further, "Gosh...I really thought you knew me better than that, Wilde."

"Oh please, Carrots. Of course I know you. We're best friends, remember?", the fox replied quickly, as he dismissed her response. He went on to select the movie, then crossed his arms in front of his chest and impatiently waited for the screen to load.

As Judy smiled to herself, she switched her focus from Nick and back to the TV. But then with a curious expression, she brought up a paw underneath her chin, and traced a small clawed-finger around it – as if she was pondering over a thought.

"Hmm. Are we even _really_ best friends...?", the rabbit casually asked, as her voice trailed off.

The opening credits of 'Giraffic World' began to play on the screen, but now Nick felt drawn by Judy's voice to glance over at her. He had a hint of perplexity on his face, as he anticipated the rest of her words.

Likewise, Judy turned to meet his gaze and gave the fox a friendly smile.

"Yes. Yes, we are.", she finally agreed.

Satisfied at the answer Judy provided, quite reminiscent of the early days of their friendship, Nick returned a smile back.


	4. Chapter 4

**Introduction:** Hello, this is my first Zootopia story. I just started publishing fanfiction earlier this year, so I apologize if the formatting of the story is awkward. Like always, I would love some feedback! Enjoy.

 **Disclaimer:** All rights to Disney and the Zootopia franchise. A few OC's are my creations.

 **Story Note:** This chapter is different than the first three, but was kind of necessary to move the story along as I needed, though I hope you still find it interesting. It is intended to take place just a few days after the previous chapters.

* * *

 **Zootopia 2: A Wilde Tale**

 **Chapter Four**

Migraines. Headaches. Brain Pains.

It was all the same to Chief Bogo, especially after 25 years of working for the Zootopia Police Department. Like for any high official, at times the stress of the job took a toll on him.

Many years earlier, he had started off as a humble Junior Officer, then slowly yet surely, climbed up the ranks until he was appointed Chief of Precinct One – the oldest and most storied precinct of the city. For certain it was a tough position, one not meant for the softhearted.

But at the end of the day, Bogo knew he did not belong anywhere else. The robust Cape buffalo willingly dedicated more than half his life to the police force, and did not have any regrets about it.

ZPD was home for him, and always would be.

Though despite all of this, there were some days the Chief had no choice but to deal with the less attractive aspects of the job, the kind that involved shady department relations and tense office politics – the type of thing Bogo despised.

Unfortunately, it seemed that today, was to be one of _those_ days.

It was late Monday morning, and Bogo had just returned from a two-day weekend vacation, an extremely rare occurrence for him as a police leader. But now, the reality of recent changes in Zootopia hit him hard, like an angry rhino with an old grudge.

As the Chief sat at the mahogany desk in his private office, he re-read the email displayed on his work computer for the third time, and let out a weary sigh.

"Well thank you, Big Brother. Things will be getting interesting around here, won't they be?", the buffalo asked himself, quite sarcastically. He stretched out and leaned back in his chair, then tiredly settled his strong arms along it's side-rests.

The strongly-worded correspondence was from his own superiors, the Board of Police Commissioners.

And in the email, the Broad essentially informed precinct leaders that new and dire changes were going to occur in the ZPD, including with Bogo's own domain – whether they liked it or not:

Going forth, ZPD employees were going to be under closer watch and tougher scrutiny, more than what was standard in years past.

But as to exactly how this would all pan out, the Board had declined to explain in detail, as of yet. Though in due time, they would all surely find out.

Yet what Bogo did know was, that this change was all due to the Mayor. Or rather, due to Zootopia's incapability to secure a Mayor.

After the impeachments of Lionheart and Bellwether, the newly instated interim leader – an elderly panda named Eleanor Green – had declined to run officially for office and stepped down instead, as she no longer wanted the responsibility.

But all of this political drama had left the citizens of Zootopia feeling jaded and uncertain in their view of the City Hall. The populace was tired of corruption and dishonesty – more than ever, they wanted a leader they could trust.

And so just a month earlier, in the latest and much anticipated mayor election, a new politician had finally been elected to lead the city – a honey badger by the name of Jerry Payne.

And while Payne may have been small in his size, he was certainly big in his bravado.

Now, as Chief Bogo thought of the predator mammal, he cringed slightly and rubbed both of his hand-like hooves on his aching temples. He had met Payne a few times, and found him to be an intense individual, to say the least – which even Bogo had to admit, meant a lot coming from his own self.

 _'Thanks to Lionheart and Bellwether's indiscretions, everyone else has to suffer the consequences'._ , Bogo thought, rather spitefully.

In the months leading up the election, Payne had run a campaign based on his future ideals of "cleaning house" and "cracking down" on personnel corruption within the metropolis. The honey-badger promised the public that if he was elected, he would strike down hard to eliminate Zootopia of _any_ crooked or unfit individuals employed in _all_ of the city's divisions, not just his own.

And fatefully, this also included the ZPD.

But all in all, this is exactly what the people wanted to hear, which is why the people voted for Payne as Mayor.

The buffalo let out another long sigh, and now turned his attention back to his computer screen. He abruptly toggled out of the email, then opened up a spreadsheet window that contained the schedules of his employees for the next couple of weeks.

Bogo had some planning to do.

It was pertinent he spent the next week or so precariously explaining to his officers what the near future may hold for Precinct One. Between all the different employees and watches, the Chief knew big group meetings were not realistic for this sort of conversation.

Instead, he planned to talk with the officers in pairs, just partner and partner.

 _'How am I supposed to explain, that even though I myself trust them, that just isn't enough anymore?',_ pondered Bogo, with a concerned expression upon his face.

On the outside, the old bull seemed like a tough guy. But on the inside, he still cared deeply for his kind: A good relationship between a chief and his officers was the foundation of any prestigious police department – this was a fact Bogo knew very well.

And he also knew, that sometimes even the chief could be proved wrong, and learn a new thing or two from his own officers.

Now, as Bogo continued sitting at his desk and reminiscing over his storied police chief career, he slowly found himself distracted away from his screen, and started to focus his attention elsewhere.

He now gazed up towards a three-pane window, which covered a portion of the office's front wall and faced into the department lobby. The blinds were currently drawn up, and from where he was seated, the buffalo still had a decent view of the building's reception area.

Like usual, the ever friendly and cordial Officer Clawhauser manned the front desk, greeting visitors and taking-in phone calls. But at the moment, there were two other ZPD officers with him - fully dressed in uniform and coffee cups in hand - casually chatting with the portly cheetah.

Wilde and Hopps. Hopps and Wilde.

Suddenly, Bogo looked down at the clock on his desk – it was only 11:30 AM. Like usual, the rabbit-and-fox pair had arrived for their shift early, which was not due to start until noon, and were already prepared for duty.

The smaller-mammal partners were two of Chief's officers he deemed most trustworthy and reliable in the precinct, and he held them in high regard. Though of course, as it was in his nature, he did not make a habit of actually telling them so.

Now once again, the Chief glanced towards the reception area, and could not resist but smile to himself just a bit.

 _'My cops are good cops. They'll be just fine, I'm sure of it'._ , Bogo thought confidently.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** This chapter turned out to have more politics and police-hierarchy content in it than I originally planned, but I hope it came off convincing enough - I tried to do some research lol. Thanks for reading!


End file.
